1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information processing apparatus which generates print data to lay out and print a plurality of jobs on one print sheet, a control method therefor, and a program.
2. Description of the Related Art
A commercial printing business receives an order of a creation request of printed materials (e.g., magazine, newspaper, brochure, advertisement, and gravure) from a third party (customer or client), creates printed materials desired by the client, and delivers them to the client so as to get a reward. The commercial printing business still prevalently uses a large-scale printing device such as an offset prepress and press even today.
Such commercial printing business proceeds with operations via various processes. Such processes include, for example, manuscript reception, design and layout, comprehensive layout (presentation by means of printer output), proofing (layout correction and color correction), proof print, artwork preparation, print, post-process, shipping, and the like. Artwork preparation is mandatory for use of the aforementioned printing press, and once an artwork is prepared, it is not easy and is disadvantageous in terms of cost to correct it. Hence, elaborate proofing, i.e., layout checking and color confirmation operations are indispensable.
In this manner, such printing business requires a large-scale device, and takes considerable time to create printed materials desired by clients. These operations require expert knowledge, i.e., know-how of experts called craftsmen.
Meanwhile, in recent years, along with the advent of high-speed, high-quality electrophotographic printing devices and inkjet printing devices, a so-called print-on-demand market prevails as competition with the aforementioned printing business. Print-on-demand will be abbreviated as POD hereinafter.
The POD aims at handling the print process within a short delivery period by dividing a job to be handled by a printing device into those of relatively smaller lots without using any large-scale device or system. Especially, this POD implements digital prints using digital data by fully utilizing a digital image forming apparatus such as a digital copying machine, digital multifunction peripheral, and the like in place of the large-scale printing press and printing scheme. A POD market as a POD-based business category has been developed. Such POD market merges digitalization compared to the conventional printing business, effectively utilizes computerized management and control, and makes an attempt to reach the printing business level using computers.
In such situation, PFP as a print service of a copy/print shop, CRD as an in-house print service, and the like are known in the POD market. Note that PFP is short for Print For Pay, and CRD is short for Centralized Reproduction Department.
The printing business and POD market have proposed services to execute all tasks at once instead of the party concerned. These tasks include reception and placement of an order for a printed material as merchandise, packing, delivery, after-sale services, inventory control, and payment control. However, there is room to study.
The printing business and POD market have examined even a system which supports business planning and administrative tasks through collection, processing, and reports of production-related data. Such system accumulates information, and provides proper information to a requiring section as needed. In the current situation, however, no optimum system has been implemented or applied yet.
At present, the POD market cannot employ a skilled operator, unlike the conventional printing business. Demands have also arisen for achieving a job at low cost, doing business with small investments, and reducing TCO. However, since the POD market is new, it cannot fully meet these demands, and problems are left unsolved. TCO is short for Total Cost of Ownership.
The printing business and POD market adopt a technique of laying out and printing a plurality of data (manuscript data) such as photos on one print sheet, and then cutting the print sheet. For example, a plurality of fixed-form data such as photos are imposed on one print sheet. At this time, there is a technique of reducing the number of times of cutting by setting the print area to a sheet edge, or making the print area adjacent to another data to share the printer's mark.
It is common practice to merge a plurality of print jobs into one print job (gang job), print the gang job, and cut the resultant printed material into those corresponding to the respective print jobs (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-94799).
In conventional gang job printing by digital prints, the cutting process requires a longer process time than those of pre-processes (layout and printing). Further, the process time of the cutting process greatly changes because the cutting procedures are different between layouts.
Even if gang job printing or printing of multiple pages/sheet is executed to reduce the cost and shorten the print time, the cutting process takes a long time depending on the layout. The work load per unit time increases, failing to reduce the final cost and shorten the process time.